What happens next for Rigo, Ward, and Kovalev?

Lebedev is also 37 with a lot of wear-and-tear, definitely a winnable fight for Ward. Yeah Ward said he would go up for the right situation, and that is definitely it. Ward might even be the favorite in that fight, and there's a belt on the line (even if Lebedev shouldn't have it) Bellew for big money would be a good fight, but I'm not sure Ward would want to go to England, and Bellew can make more money at heavyweight

Cleverly is probably the least interesting of those opponents, but yea I tend to agree with your take of Ward's opinion on fighting the other 3 guys. I predict some titles being dropped/stripped lol. This is the main reason we don't have as many undisputed champions & its why I quit caring about undisputed champions. Its not so much a accomplishment as being a diplomatic boxer thats willing to be backlogged in less meaningful, less paying fights when ones true goal should be the biggest & best fight to be made each time out once you've gotten to this level of the sport. I'd probably even argue that if we are gonna have all these f#cking titles when there is a title holder with more than 1 title that all the specific belt mandatory's need to fight each other til there is one multi belt mandatory cuz its a lil insane that a guy with all 4 belts would have to be consistently put into fights with so many guys each & every year. If I was a multi belt title holder I'd only defend the mandatory belt vs the mandatory guy & not put my other belts on the line at all unless they would push back other mandatory fights for me doing so. There's too much abc bs that goes on in boxing. Kovalev vs Beterbiev is maybe the best fight to make next time out for him I feel like. Its a fight that should make massive sense at this point. But Rigo should have a cashout mindset with every fight these days. I'm still not convinced anyone can beat him so he should just get the best crazy fight he can get. Its a waste of his talent & his time to be fighting so seldom vs these guys who aren't a tenth of what he is. So he needs to think like Kell Brook previous to the GGG fight, despite that not having good results for Brook, or his career will continue to get turned into dust fight by fight til he does get upset by some random guy when he's 39 or whatever. That would require the sanctioning bodies to play nice with each other, but they continue to do their own ***** which only serves to depreciate the sport's credibility. It sounds like a great idea though, especially in divisions where there's a lot of overlap. For example, Beterbiev and Gvozdyk are top 10 in all sanctioning bodies, so........why not just have them fight for the top spot across the board? I know it wouldn't be that simple, but definitely something to think about. The winner of that fight would earn the right to get a crack at Ward, while Stevenson finally faces Alvarez. Meanwhile, guys like Smith/Barrera and Bivol could only earn the #1 spot if they get through Kovalev (the former champion). Kov worked to capture the belts, but he's gonna be superseded by Bivol who's only beat 2 fringe contenders? I also agree with your idea that fighters shouldn't be defending all of their belts in every fight IF the opponent isn't ranked by that particular sanctioning body. Sanctioning bodies need to be completely integrated because the way things currently stand, the unified title-holders are getting screwed.

I won't be suprised if Adonis and Kovalev end up fighting next. Adonis now sees weaknesses in Kovalev and will try to capitalize on it. Since Kovalev lost in such a baffling way his marketability in fighting Adonis would not be affected in my opinion. If I'm Kathy Duva that's the direction I would shoot for. Its a winnable fight where Kovalev can make $$ and become champion again. For Adonis, he has the chance to CLEARLY beat Kovalev (preferably by KO) and somewhat erase his doubters. Andre Ward-Not much left for him expect to unify with Adonis but I cannot see Haymon and Roc Nation working together. Also cannot see Stevenson winning against Ward due to their styles. Rigo-Just be active!

If Joe Smith Jr. wins against Barrera then Ward should fight him this fall. Stevenson needs to fight his mandatory, Alverez this fall. If both Ward/Stevenson win they unify spring 2018. Kovalev should fight the undefeated Marcus Browne. Winnable fight for him yet still not a "stay busy" easy fight. Loma and Gonzalez already have fights so they're outta the picture for Rigo. In my opinion him and Leo Santa Cruz need to fight. Leo's high punch output will make Rigo throw more making it a more exciting fight. Rigo/LSC is a match-up that we've been asking for since LSC got to 122. I don't think that one has no chance of happening unless Rigo wins a title at 126. If Rigo goes up to 126 though, I can see people moving up to get away from him lol Kov/Browne? hmm....Browne needs to beat Monaghan first. I would think the winner would be in line for a title shot, hence bypassing Kov altogether. That's what makes this loss most painful for Kov: he'll now become more avoided than ever. I think we will see Ward fight at cruiserweight. Doesn't Roc refuse to do work with Haymon? If anything we might get Kovalev fighting Beterbiev or Stevenson. Maybe now that Kov has lost, they'll allow him to fight off HBO? How about Ward-Lebedev (if Lebedev wins in July) for a cruiserweight title? That's the only top cruiserweight that Ward's not at a serious physical disadvantage against My top choice would be Ward-Stevenson for the undisputed title (if he doesn't have to dump the IBF) Lebedev is also 37 with a lot of wear-and-tear, definitely a winnable fight for Ward.

I'll be amazed if any of them fight again this year first off lol. I think the odds are long that Rigo has any meaningful fight within 12 months and probably only slightly shorter that he fights at all in that same time frame. Kovalev probably​ fights a softer touch early next year, but they should be just throwing him in the best fight he can get cuz he'll be 35 by April and his days in boxing are almost done in particular after seeing him last night with how he kept having a quiting/ref help me kinda take on the fight. I think Ward and others had Kovalev pegged correctly as a bully and once you beat a bully you damn near destroy his confidence in himself. Ward is probably gonna tease retirement or a heavyweight fight more over the next 3 to 6 months before he'll be forced into some mandatory fight that may or may not be of any interest. Potential mandatories: Cleverly, Bivol, Beterbiev, Gvozdyk. Cleverly is probably the easiest opponent, but I think Ward will prefer to sit out. Ward Kov and Rigo are all in their 30s, with Rigo looking even older than that lol. Inactivity and losses at this stage can fxck up careers, especially for guys who lack a massive fanbase. That's why I'm anxious to see Kov back asap. As a fan of big-punching "bully" fighters, it sucks to see them take these kinds of losses or perform below expectations. However, the bully is always one punch or one win away from reminding people why they deserve to be feared.

Is that a ibf mandatory? If so yea you might be right. Idk what fights are makeable and interesting at all for Ward if Beterbiev isn't one of them right now. There's a lot of good guys on the way up that could be a threat to Ward, Kovalev and Stevenson, but none of them have much of a name yet and most of them seem to be from Russia or ex-Soviet countries so they aren't likely to attain much of a non-hardcore boxing fan base anytime soon to make a BIG fight. And as mentioned numerous times I have lil faith in Stevenson wanting to seriously make a fight with any threatening opponent so while my hope would be for Stevenson to be next for Ward in a fight between the top two guys in the division idk that I have much confidence in that fight being makeable. And while the CW and HW talk is interesting I doubt it'd happen next and it seems like a big ask. But I don't hate Ward's chances vs several of those guys, most notably current title holders Joey Parker and Wilder as crazy as that might sound to many. Maybe I'm an optimist but I think Stevenson would like to fight Ward. It's just a matter of politics, but more Haymon fighters are crossing to HBO these days than back when Kovalev vs Stevenson was on the table. I give it a small chance of happening If Joe Smith beats Barrera that would be a solid defence, if Ward is still interested in non-PPV fights Regarding the heavyweight talk, he might wait to see if Bellew vs Parker happens and then if Bellew wins he would be stupid not to jump at that chance. Like I said earlier, I think he would get a good reception in the UK

How about Ward-Lebedev (if Lebedev wins in July) for a cruiserweight title? That's the only top cruiserweight that Ward's not at a serious physical disadvantage against My top choice would be Ward-Stevenson for the undisputed title (if he doesn't have to dump the IBF)

Ward is probably gonna tease retirement or a heavyweight fight more over the next 3 to 6 months before he'll be forced into some mandatory fight that may or may not be of any interest. I think Beterbiev will be the first mandatory to be called (assuming he beats Koelling) and I doubt Ward bothers with that. Not saying he's afraid of Beterbiev or anything, just don't see him being interested in a fight like that right now

I think we will see Ward fight at cruiserweight. Doesn't Roc refuse to do work with Haymon? If anything we might get Kovalev fighting Beterbiev or Stevenson.

Rigo needs to move up to 126! Ward can do whatever he wants he just made 6.5 Million so all of his fights will likely be Money Fights from here on out if no big money fights he could retire! I want to see Unification with Stevenson but that will be difficult to get done! Kovalev I'm not really sure! HBO promoted him as this BIG BAD RUSSIAN WHO EVERYBODY FEARS well that is over with so now how do you Market Him? I also think the Blue Print is Out on Kovalev and I could see him falling into a CAREER FUNK maybe even losing again.

If Joe Smith Jr. wins against Barrera then Ward should fight him this fall. Stevenson needs to fight his mandatory, Alverez this fall. If both Ward/Stevenson win they unify spring 2018. Kovalev should fight the undefeated Marcus Browne. Winnable fight for him yet still not a "stay busy" easy fight. Loma and Gonzalez already have fights so they're outta the picture for Rigo. In my opinion him and Leo Santa Cruz need to fight. Leo's high punch output will make Rigo throw more making it a more exciting fight.

Ward vs Stevenson Rigondeaux is just cursed Kovalev vs Beterbiev Seriously! Beats Yotjan/Dickens/Flores in 4 rounds combined. 18 fights, 108 professional rounds. I always think about him aging, but how the **** can that happen when he's barely fighting?!? He's gonna need everything he has for a guy like Loma, so maybe it's better for him to keep having short fights. Because of Kovalev's propensity to tire, he may be in trouble against a fellow puncher in Beterbiev. Beterbiev is still untested though, and maybe he has gas tank problems too. It has FOTY potential, especially if they tire out at the same time and are forced to dig deep in a close fight. In a dream world, we'd get Ward/Adonis and Kov/Beterbiev on the same card.

Ward vs Stevenson Rigondeaux is just cursed Kovalev vs Beterbiev

Ward would have to travel for Bellew, which is something he's yet to do. IDK how big that match-up would be, but Bellew has earned clout over time. Maybe it's a fight that can be easily sold to UK fans. Ward is simply not a PPV fighter, a lot of these guys aren't. Great on him for continuing to get those big purses though. Bellew slipped my mind actually. I guess that is a possibility. Ward has travelled to the UK for punditry gigs in the past and gets a lot of love over here. I think it could potentially do as well as Golovkin vs Brook did. For a brief moment I considered whether he might enter the cruiserweight WBSS tourney but it's way too close now, on a different network and he's probably above that type of thing anyway I thought Flores would provide a little challenge, but he decided to flop lol. Vargas just won the WBC title, no damn way his first defense is Rigo. Maybe it happens at year's end. There are several younger opponents 122, and maybe that youthful hunger will make one of them take Rigo on. I wish Rigo could have a 12-round battle where he's forced to go Super Saiyan. I only think Loma will bring that out. Roc Nation have shown a willingness to throw money around for other fighters so if they are really behind Rigo they could easily secure anyone in that weight range for him. He had a battle with Amagasa so I don't think it's impossible that an underrated fighter like Vargas could bring the best out of him too. Also, there wasn't much to go on and I may have simply been imagining it, but his counters did not look as sharp as usual last night to me. I do think he's probably on borrowed time right now. He's a 36 year old super bantam at the end of the day

Are RN and Haymon still not working with each other? That may be a stumbling block for Ward/Stevenson. Is this fight big enough for HBO/SHO to play nice? All these fxcking political hurdles.

Rigomis gonna have to rematch that bum from last again when they give him the DQ loss. Ward idk... I don't see the Stevenson fight getting made and why would he waste his time fighting these nobodies coming up the ranks. Maybe he goes after the weakest cruiser then heavy champ and retires. Maybe we get a GGG if he gets past Canelo who knows. That would be the money fight. Kovalev will be firing then hiring a new trainer. I think he may be the one to fight Stevenson now. Or more than likely the winner of Smith vs Barerra..especially if it's Sullivan cause he's with ME. Ward has been looking for a $$$ money fight for a while (remember him calling out Chavez?), but there are very few from LHW to HW. I can see him taking an extended break like Kov, while LHW gets more organized.

At this point, it makes sense for Ward to fight Stevenson more than actually move up to CW. I think Kovalev will probably look to move up. As with Rigo... I think his KO victory will get overturned to a NC and he'll be out for another year.

I would like to see Lomachenko and Rigo next at 126,Rocnation should pay Rigo what e wants,and toprank should pay Lomachenko,and get that **** done instead of Salido in August

ward-adonis stevenson or a shot at a heavyweight champion and then call it a day. Kovalev needs a break and then make a comeback.he is still a force at light heavy. Rigo-the best move would be a fight with Lomachenko

I'd like to see Kovalev vs Beterbiev now, maybe for the IBF after Ward vacates I doubt Ward will go to cruiser since there are no PPVs for him up there. It would be nice if Stevenson would finally unify Rey Vargas is a legit challenge for Rigondeaux at super bantam Ward would have to travel for Bellew, which is something he's yet to do. IDK how big that match-up would be, but Bellew has earned clout over time. Maybe it's a fight that can be easily sold to UK fans. Ward is simply not a PPV fighter, a lot of these guys aren't. Great on him for continuing to get those big purses though. I thought Flores would provide a little challenge, but he decided to flop lol. Vargas just won the WBC title, no damn way his first defense is Rigo. Maybe it happens at year's end. There are several younger opponents 122, and maybe that youthful hunger will make one of them take Rigo on. I wish Rigo could have a 12-round battle where he's forced to go Super Saiyan. I only think Loma will bring that out.